HOPES have been raised by Crewe Town Board that redevelopment of the town's eyesore bus station can be undertaken "sooner rather than later".

The new body says some "bureaucracy" needs to be cut through, but it is seeking a new approach to the problem. Labour councillors in Crewe recently raised a petition calling for immediate action to remedy the blighted town interchange and make it "fit for purpose".

Crewe Town Board was set up last month with a remit to invest millions of pounds of government cash funnelled towards improving the town under the Towns Funding initiative and potentially under the Future High Streets Fund.

Under the former up to £25 million could be available over the next four years to give Crewe town centre a much-needed boost after years of decay.

Developers have included the bus station in the ambitious Royal Arcade redevelopment which has been hit by delays because of Covid-19. But demolition work is not due to start until September in Queensway/Victoria Street and a planning application is not expected until next year.

The politicians have urged the Town Board chiefs to spend a £750,000 cash pot immediately on revamping the bus station and say that the state of dereliction is so bad that it cannot wait until work on the Royal Arcade scheme starts.

Facilities such as a drivers' rest room and a once much-loved café have vanished over the years.

But it is understood the Town Board is pressurising Cheshire East Council - who are developing the Royal Arcade with partners Peveril Securities - to bring forward the existing plans for a new bus station.

Board member and Crewe and Nantwich MP Kieran warns there is "bureaucracy" that needs "cutting through" before any such work can begin, but he remains hopeful the bus station can be tackled soon.

"The money for a brand new bus station has already been put aside as part of redevelopment plans" said the MP. "It is about making sure it gets used at the right place and right time. I don't think anyone is happy that the current approach does that so I hope a new way forward can be agreed upon.

"Before the pandemic hit I had already been pursuing both Arriva and Cheshire East about the bus station and I am very happy to see already the Town Board gripping issues like this so we can tackle them together.

"I welcome the support of councillors and local residents for making this a priority. People are fed up with words and want to see results. Behind the scenes, I am focused on getting them."

Chairman of the Town Board, Doug Kinsman, says that people are "united in agreeing the unacceptable state of the current bus station and the need for it to be redeveloped sooner rather than later".

He added: "Though in place just for a matter of weeks, the Crewe Town Board, along with local councillors, MP Kieran Mullan and others have all been working hard with Cheshire East Council to figure out the options for doing just that.

"It is great to have an issue that we can all get behind because our shared voice is so much stronger and more compelling. We can make Crewe better, by working together."

The bus station petition can be found online here.